Shaft star Jessie T. Usher knows there’s going to be moments in his upcoming reboot in which his co-star Samuel L. Jackson is going to say something so politically incorrect that you’re going to be looking at other people in the movie theatre thinking, “Is it OK to laugh?”

But don’t worry. The bigger target — I’m looking at you millennials — the bigger the laughs.

“There were a lot of times we were on set and (director) Tim (Story) had an idea and he’d say, ‘I have a joke, but I don’t know if it’ll work.’ Sam would say the joke and people’s eyes would get real wide. But with Sam playing this character, there are no rules,” Usher says the day after the film’s Canadian premiere.

The new film is a follow-up to 2000’s Shaft, which was a sequel to the 1971 original that starred Richard Roundtree as the brash detective John Shaft.

The new film begins in 1989 with Jackson’s Shaft, the nephew of the original, in a firefight with a group of bad guys — while his girlfriend (Regina Hall) and his infant son, John Junior, are present. Not wanting John Junior to get sucked into the violent life Shaft leads, mother and son split.

The story fast forwards to the present day when a now grown up John Junior (Usher) needs dad’s help solving the murder of his friend (and navigating the dating world). Barbs, insults and some growing pains between father and son ensue.

“There’s a lot more comedy in this than the one Sam did 19 years ago,” the Independence Day: Resurgence star says in a downtown Toronto hotel.

On a quick trip into the city before he returns to shoot the second season of Amazon’s The Boys later this month, Usher, 27, spoke about the enduring appeal of the Harlem detective and working with Jackson.

Richard Roundtree played the character in 1971, Sam did a spinoff in 2000 and now here you are taking the mantle. Why do you think the Shaft concept has endured for all these years?

Honestly, that Shaft character is so bold and he’s so daring and fearless. He’s a guy who just plays his own game and doesn’t take crap from anybody. He just does his thing and it’s nice to see that. It’s kind of refreshing. There are a lot of touchy subjects that are in this film, but Shaft doesn’t care. He’s going to dress the way he wants, drive the car he wants, say what he wants … and if people don’t like that, he doesn’t care. That’s what I love about him.

He’s so politically incorrect.

Absolutely, and he knows it. It’s not an accident. People tell him what he shouldn’t say or do and he’s still going to do it.

You guys really push the envelope with some of the lines in this movie. I found myself laughing at certain lines and then I was looking around the theatre to see if other people were laughing to.

There’s a lot of moments where you’re laughing and you’ll look to your neighbour to see if they’re laughing too. … We couldn’t be afraid to try things.

Sam’s had a long career. Did he give you any advice?

There’s a lot of things you can take away from watching Sam just do his thing. He has a lot of big moments where he questions why something is being done a certain way. He puts the pressure on the people who need to be pressured. But then he’ll pull you aside and say, ‘Sometimes you got to do that otherwise people get lazy’ (laughs) … He’s got a master plan and he just likes to make sure everyone is on board.

In the sequel “Shaft,” Samuel L. Jackson stars as detective John Shaft, the nephew of the character of the same name in the 1971 blaxploitation classic “Shaft.” Kyle Kaplan, Warner Bros. Pictures

He has some great one-liners in this movie. Which was your favourite?

There’s a scene where he refers to me as (CNN anchor) Don Lemon. That caught me off guard a little bit (laughs).

The first Shaft was followed by sequels in 1972 and ’73, and then we had to wait until 2000 for another one. If fans like this version, it won’t take another 19 years for a sequel, right?

I hope that if they want to do another one we don’t make everybody wait 19 years (laughs). It would be nice to do it in a year or two.

Alright here’s the toughest question of all. Who are you rooting for in the NBA Finals?

I’m hoping that the Raps take this. I will be back up here in a few weeks shooting the second season of The Boys and it will be nice to have that energy of being in a championship city. But, also, it’ll be nice to see a change. The Golden State Warriors are a fantastic team with a lot of great players, but … we’re tired of them.

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